As the weather gets warmer, locals get more and more great options for ways to spend their leisure time. This week, bestselling author Christopher Moore comes to Nicola's; Ann Arbor's Water Hill neighborhood will offer live music performances Sunday afternoon; and the Jewish Film Festival will kick off five days of films at the MIchigan Theater. Check out all the details below.

Joni Mitchell's "Blue": A Celebration at The Ark. A cast of several of New York City's top female singer-songwriters - who call themselves Chicks with Dip - will be joined by Philadelphia percussionist Cheryl Prashker to perform Joni Mitchell's epochal, 1974 singer-songwriter masterpiece. Performers include Meg Braun, Honor Finnegan, Sharon Goldman, Catherine Miles, Karyn Oliver, Elisa Peimer, Allison Scola, Carolann Solebello, and Allison Tartalia. Thursday at 8 p.m. at The Ark, 316 S. Main in Ann Arbor. Tickets cost $20, available in advance at mutotix.com, theark.org, and 734-763-TKTS.

David Dyer at Ann Arbor Comedy Showcase. This Grand Rapids-based comic, a contributing writer to "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," offers his perspectives on everything from marriage and raising kids to current events and ear hair. Thursday at 8 p.m., and Friday and Saturday at 8 and 10:30 p.m., at 314 E. Liberty in Ann Arbor. Advance tickets cost $7 (Thursday) and $10 (Friday and Saturday), while general admission at the door costs $9 (Thursday) and $12 (Friday and Saturday). 734-996-9080 or aacomedy.com.

Christopher Moore at Nicola's Books. This best-selling writer will read from "The Serpent of Venice," his new comic novel, inspired by Shakespeare's "Othello," and "The Merchant of Venice," and Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado." The plot concerns 3 prominent Venetians who scheme to rid themselves of an obnoxious envoy from Britain. Free. Friday at 7 p.m. at Nicola's, 2513 Jackson in Ann Arbor.

Water Hill Music Festival. This free neighborhood music festival, which draws thousands of visitors, features performances by more than 100 local musicians on front porches in the Water Hill neighborhood (named for its water-themed street names) and Maypole dancing, led by Nawal Motawi. The musicians perform in various genres, from classical to jazz to rock, and this year's lineup includes: the Chenille Sisters, Waleed Howrani, Los Gatos, Hoodang, Corndaddy, Hullabaloo, Chris Buhalis, the Tree Town Community Chorus, the Ron Brooks Trio, Dick Siegel, Ella Kocher, Appleseed Collective singer Katie Lee and guitarist Andrew Brown, and many others. For more information, visit waterhill.org; programs will be available on the day of the event at Big City Small World Bakery and from volunteers on foot. (Rain date: May 11.) Sunday from 2-6 p.m., at Ann Arbor's Water Hill neighborhood, north of Miller, bounded by Brooks, Sunset, and the train tracks.

Jewish Film Festival at the Michigan Theater. This annual touring festival of documentary and feature films on Jewish themes kicks off on Sunday, starting at 1 p.m. with "Lost Town," a documentary about one man's obsessive search to get closer to his deceased father by uncovering the story of his family's town of Trochenbrod - the Ukrainian shtetl obliterated by the Nazis that was the only all-Jewish town ever to exist outside of Palestine. At 4 p.m., "The Upside Down Book" documents the story behind a copy of "Mein Kampf" brought home from Germany to Boston by a Jewish American soldier. (This film is preceded by the documentary short "Reporting on the Times; The New York Times and the Holocaust.") At 8 p.m., "The Ceremony" tells the story of an 80 year old colonel who's preparing to command the national ceremony on Israel's Independence Day - as he has done annually for more than 30 years - when a week before the ceremony, disaster strikes unexpectedly. (In Hebrew, with subtitles.) Michigan Theater, 603 E. Liberty St. in Ann Arbor. Tickets are $10 (festival pass, $100) in advance and at the door. 734-971-0990 or www.jccannarbor.org.

Jenn McKee is an entertainment reporter for The Ann Arbor News. Reach her at jennmckee@mlive.com or 734-623-2546, and follow her on Twitter @jennmckee.